Dick Messersmith

A Celebration of Life Open House for Dick Messersmith will be held on Thursday, November 10, 2022, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on the Third Floor of the Phelps County Court House in Holdrege, Nebraska.  Refreshments will be served.

An inurnment will be held on Friday November 11, 2022, at 10:00 a.m. at the Fort McPherson National Cemetery, south of Maxwell, Nebraska with Military Honors provided by the United States Air Force Honors Team.

Dick Messersmith, 91 years of age, of Holdrege, passed away on Monday, September 26, 2022, at Holdrege Memorial Homes in Holdrege. Dick was born on May 2, 1931, at Moorefield, Nebraska, the eldest of two sons, born to Orvis and Jane (Stephenson) Messersmith.  Dick was raised on a farm near Stockville, Nebraska in Frontier County. After high school, Dick enlisted in the United States Air Force at Lackland AFB in San Antonio, Texas and Wright-Patterson AFB in Ohio, rising to the rank of Staff Sergeant. After his honorable discharge, he pursued higher education from Texas Christian University and Tulane University Law School.

On June 24, 1956, Dick was united in marriage to Rose Ann Owens in Rock Island, Illinois, by Rose Ann's newly ordained father, Pastor Robert Owens.  This union was blessed with three sons:  Mark, Eric, and Paul.

The couple lived in Fort Worth, where Dick attended Texas Christian University. In 1958, they moved to New Orleans, Louisiana, where Dick attended Tulane University School of Law, and Rose Ann worked as a secretary at St. Mary's Dominican College. In 1961, they moved to Louisville and Paducah, Kentucky and later Baltimore, Maryland, while Dick worked for the Federal Bureau of Investigation. After leaving the FBI, Dick took a job as General Counsel with Campbell 66 Trucking Company. The family then moved to Norcross, Georgia and eventually the Philadelphia Area, where Dick worked for the Atlantic Richfield Oil Corporation as a corporate attorney. Upon retirement, he opened his own private practice representing interests in the petroleum industry and environmental law specializing in underground storage systems and transmission capabilities in Aston, Pennsylvania.

In 1998, Dick and Rose Ann both retired again, and moved to Holdrege where they enjoyed their many volunteering endeavors. The couple worked as ombudsman for Holdrege Memorial Homes, as well as Christian Homes. They also both spent time working for the Nebraska CASA association, representing several children as they navigated difficult times in their lives. Dick's favorite volunteering duty was as a bailiff at the Phelps County Courthouse, especially under Magistrate Darrie Streeter. Dick also joined Rotary and served as the treasurer for many years. In 2008, Dick and Rose Ann won the Freedom Award for outstanding voluntarism from the Kearney Hub. In 2015, Dick moved to Aldie, Virginia, after being invited to share their new home by Mark and Sherry, where he enjoyed the company of his family as well as many dogs. While in Aldie, he continued his volunteering at Capital Caring Health Hospice until Covid-19 precautions closed the volunteer program for several years.

Dick was preceded in death by his parents; father-in-law and mother-in-law; his wife, Rose Ann; and sister-in-law, Rhonda Messersmith.

Dick leaves to celebrate his life; three sons: Mark Messersmith and his wife, Sherry of Midlothian, Virginia; Eric Messersmith of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Paul Messersmith of Washington, D.C.; daughter-in-law, Rae Marie of Romeville, Illinois; four grandsons: Christopher and his wife, Leilani of Richmond, Virginia; Robert, Nicholas and Adam; his brother, Robert Messersmith of North Platte, Nebraska; brother-in-law, John Owens and his wife, Sandi of Bothel, Washington; and favorite and bestest grand-dog, Aran of Midlothian, Virginia.

There will be no visitation or viewing, the family is honoring Dick's wish for cremation.

A memorial has been established in Dick's honor, and kindly suggested to:  the Nebraska CASA donation, https://www.nebraskacasa.org/what_you_can_do/donate.html ; the Kearney Area Animal Shelter, https://www.kearneyanimalshelter.com/donatenow ; or the Nebraska Prairie Museum, https://nebraska-prairie-museum.square.site/product/memorial-donation/131?cs=true&cst=custom .

Expressions of caring and kindness can be sent to the family at www.nelsonbauerfh.com

The Nelson-Bauer Funeral Home in Holdrege is in charge of the arrangements.